Today marks International Women’s Day 2023. Despite all the progress we have made as a society, we still have a long road ahead in the fight for equality.
As I said earlier today on my social media channels, working-class women continue to inspire me each and every day. We do indeed walk on the shoulders of the giants who went before us – the likes of the machinists at Fords Dagenham in the struggle for equal pay; the largely ethnic minority female workforce at Grunwick who went on strike for dignity and respect; or even extending much further back to the matchgirls’ strike and the campaign led by the suffragettes for voting rights for all women.
However, let us not forget that in 2023 new stories are being written and new paths forged for the causes of equality and justice – in the home, on the streets and in the workplace. I am reminded of the women in the healthcare sector, in our NHS, with the nurses standing up for decent pay after a decade of pay restraint. Also in healthcare, we have the care workers in the North West working alongside their union, UNISON, in demanding a pay rise alongside better terms and conditions. I could go on and highlight the Unite members who work as cabin crew at British Airways who have repeatedly taken on the bosses to win for their class.
These are struggles that will pave the way for succeeding generations of women.
And that’s my biggest point in all of this because in my opinion that is one of the key tenants of being a woman – empowering the other women around you, now and always.
In solidarity the women everywhere on this International Women’s Day.
